Darwin Project takes the battle royale genre up north, where an impending ice age has given rise to a twisted new reality show in which ten participants must fight to the death under the Show Director's gaze.

Recent Reviews:

Very Positive
(236)
- 81% of the 236 user reviews in the last 30 days are positive.

All Reviews:

Very Positive
(10,923)
- 80% of the 10,923 user reviews for this game are positive.

Early Access Game

Get instant access and start playing; get involved with this game as it develops.

Note: This Early Access game is not complete and may or may not change further. If you are not excited to play this game in its current state, then you
should wait to see if the game progresses further in development. Learn more

What the developers have to say:

Why Early Access?

“We’re not making just any battle royale game; we’re building fresh features like the Show Director who serves as a master of ceremonies, Spectator Interactions that let viewers directly interact with streams, and we’re tightening up the whole experience with an emphasis on tracking that ensures players are always within arm’s reach of a tense confrontation.

From the first playtests, we knew that player feedback would be key to optimizing these systems. Because Darwin Project leans so heavily into social interaction, the best way for us to realize our vision for the game is to have an active community exploring its features and taking part in a variety of encounters―either as contestants, Show Directors, or spectators. We’re really proud of what we’ve built so far and look forward to continue improving Darwin Project with the help of our Steam Early Access players.”

Approximately how long will this game be in Early Access?

“We will launch Darwin Project out of Early Access when all its systems meet our quality targets for fun factor, balancing, and polish. We’re confident that our new patch schedule will allow us to make regular, substantial updates that will take Darwin Project to full launch before long.”

How is the full version planned to differ from the Early Access version?

“For the full version, our main objectives are perfecting Darwin Project’s key features, like the Show Director and Spectator Interactions, and increasing the scope of the game with new features, game modes, tools, Show Director powers, and more.”

Will the game be priced differently during and after Early Access?

“We do not plan to increase the price when Darwin Project leaves Early Access.”

How are you planning on involving the Community in your development process?

“We have already received great feedback from the thousands of players who participated in Alpha and Beta tests, as well as the friends and family members who join us in smaller-scale technical playtests regularly. We’ll keep monitoring feedback closely across all our channels and working hand in hand with the Darwin Project community to create a heart-pounding battle royale game that isn’t afraid to inject new ideas into the genre.”

Play Darwin Project

November 15

As promised in our latest Behind the Scenes video, we’re taking a good look at balance in Darwin Project as part of efforts to polish the overall experience. You’ll find lots of gameplay adjustments in this patch that are meant to address the discrepancies with how frequently certain equipment is used, with developer comments for each. Patch 1.17 will become available on Tuesday, November 20. Expect maintenance to begin at our usual time of 11 AM EST.

Thanks again to everyone who played an early version of this content update during our technical playtest and submitted feedback! We’ve improved this patch with your help, but don’t hesitate to continue sending us your thoughts about these changes through any of our official channels.

As a reminder, the Halloween atmosphere will disappear from Darwin Project with patch 1.17. We hope you had fun shooting pumpkins in the lobby and harvesting jack-o’-lanterns!

Important note: Due to some improvements that patch 1.17 makes to various options, any players’ remapped inputs will be reset to default. We apologize for the inconvenience!

See you in the arena!

3 New Ways to Make Private Matches More Spectacular and Interactive

As you know, our objective with Darwin Project is to further connect players and spectators, which means navigating the dichotomy between player interest and viewer entertainment. We’ve already seen that giving spectators and Show Director the power to influence matches in significant ways was at odds with the experience that many players expect―and in response to that feedback, we’ve made specific changes such as not permitting the Show Director to activate a targeted Power during a fight.

But in Private Matches, where players deliberately join with friends and agree to play by the host’s rules, where’s the harm in a little chaos?

We’ve added new options to spice up Private Matches and re-empower Show Directors and spectators―to a potential point of extreme unfairness, yes, but also of extreme entertainment and interactivity with viewers. In fact, our vision is to progressively build the Private Match into a small build-your-custom-show toolkit.

Note that all these are optional and can be disabled by the Private Match host. Show Director Unleashed and Spectator Power checkboxes have been added to the options bar when choosing between the inmate or Show Director role, while Scavenger Mode can be freely turned on or off in the lobby.

Show Director Unleashed

Show Directors ignore all the rules of normal play and have access to unprecedented privileges. Enabling Show Director Unleashed in a Private Match allows the Show Director to:

Have immediate access to all Show Director Powers (Powers will be unequipped from non-unleashed Directors in other modes)

Have access to the Invincibility Power that was previously removed

Use equipped Show Director Powers as many times as they want

Use Show Director Powers on players in combat

Use the Megaphone every 5 seconds (compared to 90 second cooldown in normal play)

Use the Soundboard as often as they want (compared to 30 second cooldown in normal play)

Gain Action Points at 10 times the normal speed

Close zones with no restrictions

Spectator Powers

With Spectator Powers, spectators on Twitch have the opportunity bid for Powers usually reserved for Show Directors using Darwin Dollars (the same currency earned through Spectator Betting) during the lobby. The spectator who wins a bid for a Show Director Power will see it added to the stream’s interface and will be able to launch it at any point during the match they’re spectating―without having to boot up Darwin Project.

At the beginning of each match, three Powers among the following will be randomly selected and made available for viewers to bid on:

Nuke

Close Zone

Manhunt

Speed Up

Warm Up

Invincibility

Heal (300)

Broadcasters on Twitch, are you ready for your spectators to wreak havoc in your Private Matches? Just make sure the host leaves Spectator Powers turned on in the Private Match options and your streams will be more interactive than ever. Note that the official Spectator Experience Twitch Extension is needed to experience the mayhem of Spectator Powers.

Scavenger Mode

In this new mode, added as a prototype, players begin with an empty Crafting Wheel and must rely on finding Blueprints for new craftable items (Arrows, Tools, and Perks) in Loot Chests and deer. These Blueprints will be added to players’ Crafting Wheels until they fill up. In addition, harvesting an Electronic will grant players an Electronic Power that’s ready to use as opposed to a resource.

Because players won’t know which equipment they’ll have access to before they start searching, Scavenger Mode puts a heavier emphasis on their ability to adapt as well as their proficiency with all available Arrows, Tools, and Electronic Powers―not just those they usually equip.

We’ve decided to add an optional version of this mode in Private Matches for players who like to be kept on their toes or just want to freshen up their Darwin Project experience. We’re interested to hear whether Scavenger Mode is a hit among you and your friends in Private Matches. Please send us your feedback on any of our official channels!

Playground

The Playground is a new training room type game mode that players can enter to practice their survival skills safely. While Lancaster the Darwin Orientation Drone provides tasks to help inmates with the main mechanics, we wanted to provide new players with a way to interact with resources and experiment with their equipment without having to worry about being attacked by another player.

The Playground is a small map divided into areas meant to help players get acquainted with specific mechanics. In the Trap Museum, players can see what Traps look like when laid by another player (and even get caught inside them to understand their effects). The Archery Range is perfect to practice aiming and shooting with the Bow, and dummy inmates are also present to take any Axe swings, Arrows, and Electronic Powers coming their way. Resources (trees, leather armchairs, and Electronics) as well as Loot Chests respawn after being harvested in the Playground. More areas, marked “under construction,” will be added at a later date.

In the Playground, players can easily make changes to their Crafting Wheel by going back into the chalet (the main structure). They can also clear their inventory at any time by pressing V on a keyboard or A+B on a controller.

In this first iteration, players can only enter the Playground as an inmate.

Show Director Soundboard

The Show Director Soundboard allows the Show Director to play various sound effects, either for all inmates to hear or only those in the vicinity. The Soundboard can be used by pressing R or Y during a match and lobby, and has a cooldown of 30 seconds.

This new feature is meant to allow the Show Director to make matches more show-like and highlight the coolest moments of the match with increased emotional and narrative impact.

In this first iteration, these 12 sounds are available in the Soundboard:

What

Nice shot

Oh Yeah

Hot Damn

Sweet

Awkward

Lol

Boo

Disappointed

Laughs

Love in the air

Gasp

Spectator Betting Now Enabled in Public Matches

Betting is a work-in-progress improvement for spectator interactions that allows viewers on Twitch to place bets on which inmate or team they believe will be the last one standing.

Following positive feedback from a previous update in which we enabled spectator betting in Private Matches, we decided to integrate this feature permanently to Public Matches. The crowd favorite vote that normally appears at the beginning of a match will now be fully replaced by the betting interface in both Private and Public Matches as long as at least one player is streaming on Twitch with the Spectator Experience extension enabled (and, in the case of Private Matches, as long as the Spectator Betting option is turned on).

Note that the economy will be balanced over the next few months, so please don’t grow too attached to your wallet of Darwin Dollars as it will be reset!

80+ New Cosmetic Items

Patch 1.17 contains the largest amount of new cosmetics items we’ve added at a time since April’s customization-focused update! Over 80 new items will be obtainable from Fan Gifts and will also be purchasable with Ramen from the Shop. Here’s the overview:

Here’s a closer look at some of the styles you’ll be able to complete, but we encourage inmates to mix and match collected items to create unique outfits (and don’t forget to share them in the #fashion-project channel of the official Discord server!)

Gameplay

Removed the Axe and Teleport combination (aka “Tele-Axe”) where players could swing the Axe and immediately Teleport to damage anyone in the Teleport trajectoryDeveloper comments: This combination was not only impossible to counter due to how fast it could be executed, but it was also very difficult for new players to understand what happened when they were damaged by it. The Teleport became an automatic choice for a lot of players, and its prevalence in matches had a detrimental effect on equipment variety.

The Glider will now accelerate progressively instead of starting at full speed, reaching maximum speed after 3 secondsDeveloper comments: The Glider’s immediate burst of speed proved very powerful in almost all situations, especially as a way to quickly dodge Arrows or flee from combat, which made many players pick it over other available Tools. This change aims to limit its impact mid-fight without affecting its value when it comes to map traversal.

Removed the Show Director lightDeveloper comments: After an in-depth review of player feedback about how Show Directors and inmates interact, we determined that the Director drone’s light did little to improve either the Show Director or inmate’s experience.

Increased the Arena’s radius by 15%Developer comments: This change is intended to balance the way inmates use the Arena. Prior to patch 1.17, the Arena was overwhelmingly used defensively, and this adjustment should make the Arena more viable offensively.

Increased Hook cast time by 0.15 secondsDeveloper comments: This change will make the Hook slightly more difficult to land, and combined with its new animation, will give targeted players more of a chance to deflect or dodge it.

The Turret will no longer detect (or shoot at) players who are hidden behind obstaclesDeveloper comments: When the Turret was able to detect enemies outside of its field of view, it essentially acted as a detection device on top of putting constant pressure on its target.

Increased movement speed/lvl for Ninja, Evader and Hunter Boots from 3%/lvl to 4%/lvl

Decreased Hunter Boots movement speed/lvl when tracking an opponent from 4%/lvl to 3%/lvl

Hunter Boots will now also grant 3%/lvl more stamina when tracking an opponent

Evader Boots will now also grant 4%/lvl more stamina when being trackedDeveloper comments: These changes aim to reduce the gap between movement speed conferred by the different types of Boots in order to make the Ninja, Hunter, and Evader Boots more viable compared to the Speed Boots and encourage players to try out the specific play style associated with different Boots.

Damage done while under the effect of Shrink is now reduced by 50 instead of 100Developer comments: We felt that Shrink’s damage reduction was too significant, and this change should make it a more viable offensive option.

The Lumberjack Axe will no longer increase crafting speed or Clue harvesting speedDeveloper comments: The multiple effects of the Lumberjack Axe made it a Perk that served too many purposes. These changes will refocus it on its core purpose: resource harvesting.

The Scavenger Axe will now also increase crafting speed by 10%/lvlDeveloper comments: This addition simply aims to make the Scavenger Axe more viable compare to other Axe Perks.

Inmates who equip Fire, Berserk, or Hunter Arrows will now start with two of them instead of zero (the starting amount for regular Arrows remains unchanged)Developer comments: Starting with no Arrows gave players a sometimes frustrating disadvantage in early encounters against opponents equipped with regular Arrows because they didn’t have as many chances to retaliate.

Removed the Detector

The Radar will now also detect resources, Loot Chests, and deer

Reduced the Radar’s duration from 15 seconds to 10 secondsDeveloper comments: The Detector was vastly underused as an Electronic Power that could only detect resources, so we’ve combined it with the Radar to make this new Power more valuable in the arena. Note that the Radar will not detect Traps.

Adjusted the amount of items that inmates can receive from deer and Loot Chests during Beach Party

Deflected Arrows can now be picked up before they touch the ground

Players will now be able to look just as high in the standard view as they can while aiming

Added a buffer to the Smoke Bomb use to prevent players from accidentally consuming more of them than they intended

Optimization

Optimized cosmetic item icons in the Dressing Room

Visuals

Inmates will now wear swimsuits when the Show Director activates Beach PartyDeveloper comments: The implied nudity wasn’t ideal for family friendly players (especially content creators), and it didn’t add much to the game beyond an initial chuckle―which we think these flower-patterned swimsuits will also achieve.

Improved the character skeleton to eliminate small inconsistencies such as the Axe leaving the character’s hand while crouching and discrepancies with Bow sizes

Improved the male character’s mid-air rotation animation to be consistent with the female character’s

Improved the Hook animationDeveloper comments: The Hook was a bit too hard to read, so we updated its animation to one that will allow opponents to see it coming more easily and improve counter-playability.

Audio

Removed music during game startup

Other

Simplified role selection in the main menu by grouping role and game mode together

Changed the input to start a Private Match in Duo Mode with a controller to A+B

Renamed option to turn off for blood and Beach Party visual effect to simply “Remove Blood” now that the Beach Party implied nudity has been removed

Replaced the Detector with Shrink in the Hunter Playstyle

Moved the Shoot on Release option from Gameplay Options to Mouse and Keyboard and Controller Options

Changed default Shoot on Release inputs to left click for aim/shoot and right click for Axe Attack

The Hook will now be available immediately like other Tools instead of unlocked by completing the final task assigned by Lancaster the Darwin Orientation Drone

The Arena wall visual will now disappear twice as fast to better synchronize with the collision’s disappearance

Changed the Show Director Megaphone input to D-pad right on a controller

Allowed players to save two sets of inputs for Axe Attack and Aim in the Mouse and Keyboard Options (to account for the Shoot on Release Bow configuration being on or off)

Fixed an issue where the match auto-start feature (whose timer is now hidden) would sometimes not wait for players loading into the lobby and instead add them to the match as spectator drones

Fixed an issue where it was possible to begin to fire some projectiles before the previous animation was finished (applies only to the Snowball, Hook, Ice Bolt, and Arrow)

Fixed an issue where players could get stuck in the Arena wall or inside a Rigged Chest

Fixed an issue where using the Teleport would sometimes cause the player to become stuck inside some objects

Fixed an issue where players were able to Teleport through the Arena wall

Fixed an issue where players affected by the Show Director’s Exposed were not able to track other players anymore

Fixed an issue where it was still possible to shoot a Snowball through a wall if the player was behind cover (“right side peek”)Fixed an issue where the sudden death zone would sometimes completely disappear

Fixed an issue where the mini-map would not show the correct position of the moving sudden death area

Fixed an issue where roll attack would sometimes not damage Cage Traps

Fixed an issue where previewing a set of cosmetics in the Shop would display incorrect item icons

Fixed an issue where it was sometimes possible to Hook an opponent such that they would become stuck inside objects

Fixed an issue where players were sometimes not able to craft a second Electronic Power

Fixed an issue where the Turret would sometimes not be destroyed by Arrows if placed very close to an Electronic

Fixed an issue where trying to view a non-existent player’s profile could cause a crash [Xbox only]

Fixed an issue where getting caught in a Bear Trap would not interrupt crafting

Fixed an issue where it was not possible to continuously attack with the Axe by holding down the attack button when using the Shoot on Release Bow configuration

Fixed an issue where drawing the Bow with Shoot on Release enabled and opening the pause menu or Crafting Wheel would cause the draw animation to repeat endlessly

Fixed an issue where the Axe would appear in the character’s hand as soon as an Arrow was fired when Shoot on Release was enabled

Fixed an issue where rebinding the cancel aim button when using Shoot on Release would not change the hint visual

Fixed an issue where winning a match with Shoot on Release enabled would cause the character to draw their Bow repeatedly during the victory animation

Fixed an issue where the Electronic harvesting progress bar would freeze when multiple players were attempting to harvest the same Electronic

Fixed an issue where the Shrink effect indicator would be displayed red

Fixed an issue in Duo Mode where ally and opponent name colors would be inverted in the damage notifications when an ally would successfully trap an opponent

Fixed an issue where spectator drones in Duo Mode would receive damage notifications about players other than their ally

Fixed an issue where the EU server would sometimes become permanently highlighted when navigating the Choose Region menu with a controller

Fixed an issue where accepting a party invitation when already in a match would quit the current match and enter a new lobby

Fixed an issue where players were not warmed up when hit by Fire Arrows

Fixed an issue where the mic icon in the top right corner of the screen would appears as unmuted when spectating

Fixed an issue where Ramen would stay highlighted in the main menu when switching from keyboard and mouse to controller

Fixed an issue where aiming the Bow in a specific angle would make it disappear

Fixed an issue where navigating the Choose Region menu with a controller would also navigate in the main menu

Fixed an issue where players were able to craft while throwing a Hook

Fixed a display issue where the damage dealt by a Turret would appear doubled on the end game screen

Fixed an issue where swinging the Axe immediately after using an Ice Bolt would sometimes not play the swing animation

Fixed an issue where a player who wasn’t the party leader would be able to start a Private Match with a controller

Fixed an issue where equipping an Electronic Power during the last second of the lobby would sometimes prevent the player from crafting it during the match

Fixed an issue where harvesting a resource would sometimes be interrupted if playing with high latency

Fixed an issue where it was sometimes not possible to finish harvesting a tree

Fixed an issue where an Electronic being harvested by an opponent would sometimes not appear red on the mini-map

Fixed an issue where the Show Director was able to target defeated players with their Powers

Fixed an issue where viewing Boots in the Dressing Room with the Show Craftable option turned off would cause cosmetics to overlap

Fixed an issue where Traps and Turrets placed on the Arena wall would float after the Arena disappeared

Fixed a typo on the Cardigan Cloak

Fixed an issue where Clues collected as a drone in Duo Mode would count in the Clue Time Career stat

Fixed an issue where shared items would be identified as male character only in the Shop

Fixed an issue where some female character soccer-themed cosmetics would not have the soccer ball icon

Fixed an issue where it was possible for players to loot a dead player, a deer, or pick up a Clue while placing a Trap at the same time

Fixed an issue where the number of Electronic resources would sometimes not be updated if the player had more than two and tried to craft a Power

Fixed an issue where the “On Air” indicator would disappear if the Show Director switched very quickly between two players

Fixed an issue where receiving an Electronic Power as a Manhunt reward while crafting that same Power would still consume the Electronic resource

Fixed an issue where moving at the end of a harvesting action with roll on double tap enabled would sometimes make the player roll

Fixed an issue where pressing RB or LB while in the purchase screen of the Shop would still navigate the Shop sections

Fixed an issue for Show Director and spectators where spectating a dead body would display its cold and health bar as full

Fixed an issue where accepting a party invite for the first time after launching the game would trigger a loading screen for the party leader

Fixed an issue where landing a Berserk Arrow at the end of the unlimited stamina boost would make the stamina effect indicator disappear

Fixed an issue where Arrows would go through harvestable trees

Fixed an issue where using a Glider while crafting or looting would not make the player fly forward

Fixed an issue where the flame effect of the Fire Arrow would appear even if the player tried to aim when out of Arrows

Fixed an issue where it was not possible to navigate from the Daily Rehab Program to the bottom of the main menu with a controller

Fixed an issue where the Tripwire description was not correct in the Crafting Wheel customization menu

Fixed an issue where using D-Pad right and left to navigate between available Powers as the Show Director would exit Power selection instead

Fixed an issue where pressing X to sort the Power Deck as the Show Director in the lobby would instead close it

Fixed an issue where the Blood Moon Show Director Power would increase inmates’ Clue Time stat

Fixed an issue where trying to activate Expose as the Show Director while Blood Moon was active would display an incorrect error

Fixed an issue where dead deer would disappear in a nuked or closed zone

Fixed an issue where the female character would be affected by a visual glitch when using the Glider

November 13

Are you a sparkling person, positively glowing with charisma? Are you caustic, with a wry smile and acerbic wit that you picked up from your emotionally distant grandmother? Are you the toast of Twitch, buying everyone drinks, singing old songs? Are you a folk hero of the online world, darling of the streaming masses?

Prepare your best bluffs, write your most epic speech, rally your fans, and get ready to face the cold, crowd, and chaos that is the Darwin or Die!

Darwin or Die is a new monthly community event open to all Darwin Project players. Unlike the Top 100 Showdowns, it is a show designed to not only highlight players’ abilities, but also create the most entertaining and interactive experience for the viewers. Think Hunger Games or Running Man!

We’ll be activating all of Darwin Project’s available Spectator Interactions, so expect viewers to be able to influence the matches in all sorts of spectacular ways.

Players, be warned: It will be unfair, unpredictable, and incredibly fun!

We’ll share more specifics about the format closer to the event. For now, all you need to know is that Darwin or Die is a wild, no-holds-barred Darwin Project romp where mics are required! The winner will be rewarded the exclusive King Momo Hat, which they will have the privilege to wear only until the next month when the King Momo Hat will once again be up for grabs.

About This Game

Darwin Project takes place in a dystopian post-apocalyptic landscape in the Northern Canadian Rockies. As preparation for an impending Ice Age, a new project, half science experiment half live-entertainment, is launched. It's called "Darwin Project" and it challenges 10 participants to survive the cold and fight to the death in a treacherous arena.

KEY FEATURES:- MANHUNT & SURVIVAL: Track the position of enemies, by using environmental clues they left behind and be creative with your use of crafted traps to take the upperhand. The biting cold of the Northern Canadian Rockies will also slowly freeze you should you be careless.

- SHOW DIRECTOR:The Show Director is the living bridge between the players and spectators. He/She is the host and master who controls the arena with nuclear bombs, zone closures, gravity storms, and the power of their voice. This could be a real tool of self discovery; the start of your new career as a charming but deadly game show host. - LIVE SPECTATOR INTERACTIONS:Stream viewers can also bet live on the competitors they think will reign supreme, in addition to helping the Show Director choose targets for their arena-shaping powers. Whether they’re voting on which player deserves a death-defying heal or which zone to nuke, it’s time for spectators to become active participants in the manhunt!